Freshly sober
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2018
Posts: 29
Freshly sober
I've been trying to get sober from alcohol for some time now. The physical pain keeps stopping me. Is there any advice on how to help this without going to a treatment facility? I have to work full time and have a family. I have to do this at home unfortunately. Thanks for any advice!
Welcome to the family. You could ask your doctor for medical help in getting thru the first few days of withdrawal. Doctors can prescribe a short course of benzos to get you safely thru the worst of w/d.
I wish you the best and hope our support can help you get sober for good.
I wish you the best and hope our support can help you get sober for good.
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Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: MN
Posts: 8,704
Pretty common question early on. Getting sober can be done without treatment, people do it all the time. On the other hand, withdrawals can be dangerous and should not be ignored if they get serious. At that point you will need medical attention. Congratulations on your decision to quit drinking.
Getting thru the first week can be difficult. See if your dr can help. I had to go to the ER because of serious w/d symptoms. Then I sought out as much help and support that I could find. My family was involved and it was a great source of understanding and comfort. Hope you get the advice that you are looking for. The real strength comes from inside of you. It is putting your own sobriety as first priority.
Member
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 230
I detoxed couple times alone at home , without medication and without next of keen. I went to doctor but was advised not to stop drinking what i found ridiculous as for a binge emotional drinker it is all or nothing. So i stopped by myself drinking water and praying . Removed all alcohol from home and tried to eat something or take juice . However , i was lucky never expierienced seizuires or halluscinations but some people do. If you drink every day for long period of time weeks , months it can be dangerous. I was frustrated as all gp denied any medication and i did detox by myself. What i noticed in UK funds had been cut on adddiction and social care if you want rehab or hospital you need to be rich or vice verss homeless picked up from street in life danger. I use AA and recovery hubs. Good luck with detox definitely getting prescribed someti g will save you terrible anxiety and insomnia x D
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Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: California
Posts: 182
Vitamins and supplements galore will help:
- a super B complex is a must (if you overheat really easy, just start with Thiamine and Folic acid. Niacin is a flusher and tends to make you have hot flashes which is super uncomfortable when you're first detoxing and already running hot).
- A multi-vitamin or better yet, Emergen-C
- Fish oil (especially if you smoke cigarettes)
- Milk Thistle (assists w/ liver cleansing)
- St. John's Wart (if not on any antidepressants this can help immensely but it takes about 4 days to start noticing effects)
Essential oils:
- Peppermint, lavender, Frankincense, Amyris (for sleep).
Medications (if possible to be prescribed by your doctor):
- withdrawal assistance (Gapapentin, Methocarbinal)
- Anxiety meds if needed
Other suggestions:
- I tend to get constipated when getting sober, having Metamucil or Milk of Magnesia works for me. If you're the opposite, I would stick to a BRAT diet if possible.
- Light exercise. My first reaction when told this was HA! Yeah, right. But this helped my shakes, tremors and pains immensely. Brisk walking, stretching, slow circles with your arms and legs.
- Journal how crappy you feel when detoxing. I still read that daily when my cravings hit. It's funny how forgetful we are once feeling better; I'm glad I was disgustingly descriptive.
This all helped for me but every body is different. Kudos to you for making this step!
- a super B complex is a must (if you overheat really easy, just start with Thiamine and Folic acid. Niacin is a flusher and tends to make you have hot flashes which is super uncomfortable when you're first detoxing and already running hot).
- A multi-vitamin or better yet, Emergen-C
- Fish oil (especially if you smoke cigarettes)
- Milk Thistle (assists w/ liver cleansing)
- St. John's Wart (if not on any antidepressants this can help immensely but it takes about 4 days to start noticing effects)
Essential oils:
- Peppermint, lavender, Frankincense, Amyris (for sleep).
Medications (if possible to be prescribed by your doctor):
- withdrawal assistance (Gapapentin, Methocarbinal)
- Anxiety meds if needed
Other suggestions:
- I tend to get constipated when getting sober, having Metamucil or Milk of Magnesia works for me. If you're the opposite, I would stick to a BRAT diet if possible.
- Light exercise. My first reaction when told this was HA! Yeah, right. But this helped my shakes, tremors and pains immensely. Brisk walking, stretching, slow circles with your arms and legs.
- Journal how crappy you feel when detoxing. I still read that daily when my cravings hit. It's funny how forgetful we are once feeling better; I'm glad I was disgustingly descriptive.
This all helped for me but every body is different. Kudos to you for making this step!
If you have any concerns at all, please talk to your doctor.
Member
Join Date: Aug 2018
Posts: 11
Same Boat, we will not sink, we are going to fight!!!!!!
I've been trying to get sober from alcohol for some time now. The physical pain keeps stopping me. Is there any advice on how to help this without going to a treatment facility? I have to work full time and have a family. I have to do this at home unfortunately. Thanks for any advice!
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2018
Posts: 29
Thank you!! Keep your strength too! This is a hard battle to fight for sure and right now I'm winning, but tomorrow is a whole new day. I'm trying to live in moments at a time being miserable in pain but still taking care of my household. I keep praying and I'll keep praying! Stay strong! ❤
I needed medical detox. My GP and my addiction psychiatrist both said I was in a lot of danger if I tried to detox without benzos and medical monitoring of fluids, etc. I ended up not needing a central IV line but I did need benzos. I had to wait a number of hours because they wanted to bring my BAC down further before they started the valium. I was headed towards hallucinosis and seizures, so they caved. It really did take most of the physical pain out of it. Trust me, I've self-detoxed before and I was nearly to that point.
THat was me. I was extremely ill. However, I ended up going to rehab for 30 days after the medical detox, my insurance paid for all but $3K of it and I got disability. There was nothing my employers could do about it, and were forbidden by law to even ask me about my condition (this is in the US). Fortunately I had people to take care of my dog. That 5 weeks gave me such a head start on my sobriety that I'm not sure I wouldn't have gotten it right the first time without it. Not that people don't do multiple rehabs, but it really worked for me. So many say they "can't take the time," but in reality if you can't stop drinking or using otherwise, a job and a family has a lot more pain in dealing with one's addiction than they would with someone getting better.
More of a soapbox thing really. It's not for everyone, and it seems in the UK it's out of reach for most. It's really a shame.
My major point, and i do have one, is that a doctor should be involved if you're having any significant withdrawal symptoms, and its best if it's an addiction doctor rather than just a GP. Had I tried to self-detox there's a good chance i would have died, especially since there was lunesta addiction on top of the alcohol.
Please talk to your doctor. To me your symptoms sound relatively minor, but I AM NOT A DOCTOR.
THat was me. I was extremely ill. However, I ended up going to rehab for 30 days after the medical detox, my insurance paid for all but $3K of it and I got disability. There was nothing my employers could do about it, and were forbidden by law to even ask me about my condition (this is in the US). Fortunately I had people to take care of my dog. That 5 weeks gave me such a head start on my sobriety that I'm not sure I wouldn't have gotten it right the first time without it. Not that people don't do multiple rehabs, but it really worked for me. So many say they "can't take the time," but in reality if you can't stop drinking or using otherwise, a job and a family has a lot more pain in dealing with one's addiction than they would with someone getting better.
More of a soapbox thing really. It's not for everyone, and it seems in the UK it's out of reach for most. It's really a shame.
My major point, and i do have one, is that a doctor should be involved if you're having any significant withdrawal symptoms, and its best if it's an addiction doctor rather than just a GP. Had I tried to self-detox there's a good chance i would have died, especially since there was lunesta addiction on top of the alcohol.
Please talk to your doctor. To me your symptoms sound relatively minor, but I AM NOT A DOCTOR.
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2018
Posts: 29
I am actually feeling much better today. I'm not having the body aches but I still have a little anxiety which I am now taking medication for. This is day 2 for me and I feel good so far. I'm praying the withdraw symptoms are done and I can move on with my sobriety. I'm happy you got the help you needed and I thank you for sharing your experience with me. If I continued on the path I was on, things would get much worse and fast. Today, I'm happy to be sober but I'm only talking it one day at a time!
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